Cover assembly



July 18, 1967 N. L. SORRELL COVER ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct.20, 1965 ORWOOD LSomzEu- July 18, 196 N. L. SORRELL COVER ASSEMBLY 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 20, 1965 58 x I'ZOK IQEQ.

400. loo.

NVENTOR & W 7

WEN- ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,331,295 COVER ASSEMBLY Norwood L.Sorrel], Benson, N.C., assignor to Foundry Products and Methods,Incorporated, Benson, N.C. Filed Oct. 20, 1965, Ser. No. 498,544 3Claims. (Cl. 94-34) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A manhole or utilityaccess cover assembly including a lid and support walls withinterchangeable height variance rings interposed between the walls andthe lid, and having lift means adopting portions of the wall forvertical lifting.

This invention pertains generally to improved cover assemblies, and morespecifically, to covering assemblies of changeable height adaptable tobe effectively raised from an original height to succeeding increasedheights.

A general objective of the invention resides in the provision of a coverassembly for a manhole, meter box, or like street opening, the assemblyincluding an access lid, and means for varying the height of the lidwith respect to other portions of the assembly. In the construction ofstreets, sidewalks, and the like, it is necessary to provide access tovarious subterranean equipment. In conventional practice, such access ismade available through cover assemblies comprising embedded walls withcover lids thereon, the cover lids being mounted in substantially flushrelationship to the top surface of the adjacent paving. When streets orthe like are thereafter resurfaced, it is current practice to fullyremove and re-position the existing covers in order to raise the coverlid to the desired flush relation to the new street level. In the priorart, various means have been proposed to permit raising of the level ofsuch covers to the level of successive layers of paving withoutexcavation, such as by stepped groove arrangements, but prior proposalshave failed to find general acceptance. It is therefore an object ofthis invention to provide non-complex, relatively inexpensive means topermit raising of the level of cover lids for an access opening inpaving. A related objective is to supply a means as aforesaid in whichthe gradient gradent of height increase is substantially without limit.

Yet another object of importance is to provide a cover assembly of thetype hereinbefore described wherein a basic portion of the assembly isembedded in the adjacent paving and telescopically receives a secondportion of changeable height. In this connection, the invention provideseffective means to permit change in the positioning of the assembly witha minimum of labor and difiiculty.

A further objective hereof is to provide a construction permittingsalvage of certain components of existing cover assemblies.

Still another object resides in the provision of a system amenable to awide variety of shapes of openings and styles of existing covers.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will becomemore apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of thefollowing specification, when read in conjunction with the annexeddrawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a disassembled perspective view of a first form of coverassembly constructed and assembled in accordance with the teachings ofthis invention;

FIGURE 2 is an assembled perspective view of the assembly of FIGURE 1,shown with paving broken away for illustration;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view takensubstantially on line 3-3 of FIGURE 2, looking in the direction of thearrow;

FIGURE 4 is a detail sectional view of the line 44 of FIGURE 3, lookingin the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 5 is .an exploded perspective view of a modified form of theinvention; and

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged vertical cross sectional view of the form of theinvention shown in FIGURE 5.

Referring to the drawings in more detail, the invention is therein shownin an exemplary form and in an environment of use which is also shown asan example only and not by way of limitation. This environment is thatof a roadway or the like area in which is located a tubular manholestandard 10 extended through subterranean earth 12. The standard 10 hasa top edge 14, and first layer of paving 16 of aggregate materialoverlies the earth about the edge 14. This layer of paving has an uppersurface 18, which is initially the street surface, and an overlayinglayer 20 has been subsequently applied. The layer 20 has an exposedsurface 22 comprising the street level following the overpaving. Thus,the environment of use comprises an aggregate ground covering structurewith an opening therein above a device to which access is required.

A first form of cover assembly 24 hereof, as shown in FIGURES 1 through4 of the drawings, comprises an embedded wall means 26. Means 26includes an upstanding tubular wall 28 having inner and outer faces 30,32, respectively, and upper and lower edges 34, 36. The upper edge 34 isinwardly tapered to provide a guide means for seating of elements placedwithin the wall 28, while the lower edge 36 is integrally joined tounitary inward and outward flanges 38 and 40 which project from the wallfaces. As best shown in FIGURE 3, the flanges are supported on the topedge 14 of the standard 10, and a plurality of gusset plates 42 extendbetween the flange 40 and wall 28 and are embedded in the first layer 16of paving.

For the selective height variance of the overall assembly 24, ring means44 is supplied, and includes at least one annular ring 46, of anyselected height. The particular height selected is dependent upon thethickness of the overlying layer 20 of paving, as appears in more detailbelow. Each ring 46 has proximal and distal surfaces 48, 50, and top andbottom edges 52, 54 respectively. The ring 46 is telescopically receivedwithin the wall 28 in closely spaced concentric relation thereto, andthe bottom edge 54 (in the case where one ring is used) rests on and issupported by the inward flange 38. The entire assembly 24 is constructedof heavy material, such as cast metallic substances often of ferrousbase, and hence, removability of the closely fitted rings 46 from thewall 28 requires a straight, rectilinear lift action. Means toaccomplish such lift is provided by the invention and includessubstantially equidistantly spaced lift points. The ring 46 has, asshown, at least three upwardly inclined openings 56 formed therein atsubstantially equidistantly spaced locations, opening on its distalsurface. These openings receive pins of a lift system, described below,to permit lifting of the ring in non-tilted, rectilinear fashionsubstantially parallel to the wall 28. As implied above, as successivelayers of paving are added to the layer 20, additional rings 46 may besupplied within the limits of the wall height or extensions thereof.Thus, following initial placement of the embedded wall portion 26 it isthereafter unnecesary to excavate such section in order to maintain thecover at its desired flush relation with street level.

The invention further comprises a lid support wall 58 including astraight section 60 and an enlarged upper portion 62. The straightsection 60 has a base edge 64 rested on the top edge 52 of the ring 46,or alternatively rested on a flange 38 before application of theadditional paving and ring. The section 60 is of a diametersubstantially equal to the diameter of the ring and is telescopicallymounted within the wall 28 of the embedded portion of the assembly. Theenlarged portion 62 is of increased diameter and has a sloping wall 66corresponding in inclination to the inclination of the wall edge 34, andfurther has a stepped interior providing a support ledge 68.

Adjacent the ledge and within the enlarged portion 62, the wall 58 hasinwardly opening, upwardly inclined lift openings 70 formed therein atspaced locations, similar to the ring openings 56 and for a likepurpose. As shown in FIGURE 1, lift hooks 72 are engageable in theseopenings and have chains 74 or the like jointly connected to a hook 76of a lift means such as a lift truck boom or the like (not shown).

The assembly is completed by a lid 78 having a top 80 and re-enforcedbase 82, the base including a rim 84 resting on the ledge 68 of the lidsupport wall. The lid additionally has lift means 86 at one side.

FIGURES and 6 are illustrative of a slightly modified constructionnecessitated in some municipalities where specifications for theopenings are different from those where the first described form of theinvention is employed. In the second form of the invention, likereference characters are applied to similar elements, the letter a beingappended thereto for distinction. It will be observed that the majorvariance in the modification resides in the uniform diameter of the lidsupport wall 58a as opposed to the enlarged upper end construction ofthe first form. In order to provide a seat for the lid 78a of the secondform of the invention, the support wall 58a has an inner ledge member100 having a top wall 102, an inclined side wall 104, and an angularbase wall 106. As shown in FIGURE 6, the lift openings 70a for thesupport wall 58a open on the base wall 106.

The top edge 34a of the embedded wall 28a is outwardly inclined in thisconstruction, and the top 78a is of somewhat altered form from a designstandpoint.

Operation of the second form of the invention is as described above withrespect to the first form of the invention.

It is a feature of each form of this invention that the lid supportwalls 58 and 58a and the lids 78 and 78a are adapted for fabricationfrom existing cover assemblies by suitable machining of the outer wallportions thereof, thereby permitting salvage of these rather costlyarticles.

Having described and illustrated two forms of the invention in somedetail, it will be understood that these descriptions and illustrationsare offered only by way of example, and that the invention is to belimited in scope solely by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A cover assembly for use in covering an outlet extended throughpavement having a substructure and at least one overlying layer with atop surface, the cover assembly comprising:

an annular embedded wall in the substructure including an uninterruptedupright wall of a given diameter, and including a continuous inwardflange;

annular ring means, including at least one ring element, each ringelement having a flat top and bottom edge, the bottom edge of one ringelement resting on the inward flange of the wall about the fullperipheral extent thereof;

each ring having radially spaced lift openings formed therein arrangedto permit linear, vertical removal of such ring from the embedded wallmeans and to avoid deviation from said linear, vertical removal;

the ring means being substantially equal in height to the depth of theoverlying layer, and being of a diameter less than the given diameter ofthe embedded wall;

the fiange being of a thickness substantially equal to the thickness ofthe rings whereby when assembled, and uninterrupted opening is provided;

a removable lid support wall of annular, uninterrupted form, having aflat annular base edge seated on a top edge of the ring means andbearing against said top edge throughout its full peripheral extent;

the lid support wall having radially spaced opening means therein topermit, linear, vertical removal of said lid support wall from theembedded wall means and to avoid deviation from said linear, verticalremoval;

the lid support wall including lid support means; and

a lid seated on the lid support means, the lid having an outer surfacesubstantially coplanar with the top surface of the overlying layer.

2. The invention of claim 1, wherein:

the embedded wall includes an outer flange; and

gusset plates extending between the wall and the outer flange.

3. The invention of claim 1, wherein:

the opening means comprise upwardly inclined, equidistant ly spacedgroups of openings.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 599,457 2/1898 Sanborn 9434638,692 12/1899 Banwell 9434 1,710,571 4/1929 Formi 9434 1,940,924 12/1933 Taylor 9434 FOREIGN PATENTS 443,634 2/1936 Great Britain.

REINALDO P. MACHADO. Primary Examiner.

1. A COVER ASSEMBLY FOR USE IN COVERING AN OUTLET EXTENDED THROUGHPAVEMENT HAVING A SUBSTRUCTURE AND AT LEAST ONE OVERLYING LAYER WITH ATOP SURFACE, THE COVER ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: AN ANNULAR EMBEDDED WALL INTHE SUBSTRUCTURE INCLUDING AN UNINTERRUPTED UPRIGHT WALL OF A GIVENDIAMETER, AND INCLUDING A CONTINUOUS INWARD FLANGE; ANNULAR RING MEANS,INCLUDING AT LEAST ONE RING ELEMENT, EACH RING ELEMENT HAVING A FLAT TOPAND BOTTOM EDGE, THE BOTTOM EDGE OF ONE RING ELEMENT RESTING ON THEINWARD FLANGE OF THE WALL ABOUT THE FULL PERIPHERAL EXTENT THEREOF; EACHRING HAVING RADIALLY SPACED LIFT OPENINGS FORMED THEREIN ARRANGED TOPERMIT LINEAR, VERTICAL REMOVAL OF SUCH RING FROM THE EMBEDDED WALLMEANS AND TO AVOID DEVIATION FROM SAID LINEAR, VERTICAL REMOVAL; THERING MEANS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL IN HEIGHT TO THE DEPTH OF THEOVERLYING LAYER, AND BEIND OF A DIAMETER LESS THAN THE GIVEN DIAMETER OFTHE EMBEDDED WALL; THE FLANGE BEING OF A THICKNESS SUBSTANTIALLY EQUALTO THE THICKNESS OF THE RINGS WHEREBY WHEN ASSEMBLED, AND UNINTERRUPTEDOPENING IS PROVIDED; A REMOVABLE LID SUPPORT WALL OF ANNULAR,UNINTERRUPTED FORM, HAVING A FLAT ANNULAR BASE EDGE SEATED ON A TOP EDGEOF THE RING MEANS AND BEARING AGAINST SAID TOP EDGE THROUGHOUT ITS FULLPERIPHERAL EXTENT; THE LID SUPPORT WALL HAVING RADIALLY SPACED OPENINGMEANS THEREIN TO PERMIT, LINEAR, VERTICAL REMOVAL OF SAID LID SUPPORTWALL FROM THE EMBEDDED WALL MEANS AND TO AVOID DEVIATION FROM SAIDLINEAR, VERTICAL REMOVAL; THE LID SUPPORT WALL INCLUDING LID SUPPORTMEANS; AND A LID SEATED ON THE LID SUPPORT MEANS, THE LID HAVING ANOUTER SURFACE SUBSTANTIALLY COPLANAR WITH THE TOP SURFACE OF THEOVERLYING LAYER.